Understanding satire has never been a strong skill in conservative thought.
One need not look further than former Ohio state treasurer Josh Mandel, who currently has the internet in stitches over his lack of critical thinking.
Earlier this week, Mandel shared a satirical article by Joe Mathews. In the article, Mathews argues California should abolish parenthood in the name of equality, an extreme and obviously ridiculous premise.
Mandel didn’t see it that way.
Instead, the Trump supporting politician insisted this was the genuine goal of left-wing policies.
Anyone else who reads the article can tell from its extreme viewpoints and language it is not actually advocating for abolishing parenthood in California.
If you still weren’t entirely convinced, the article also references “A Modest Proposal,” a famous satirical essay that advocates for the poor to sell their children to the rich to ease their economic conditions.
Mathews article also ends by mentioning a “brave new world,” a reference to the famous novel of the same name where a dystopic society births children in artificial wombs and assigns them social classes.
It was all so obvious for anyone who actually read the article.
However, Mandel isn’t one people would credit with an overabundance of critical thinking.
After he lost a campaign to Senate Democrat Sherrod Brown of Ohio in 2012, he tried again in 2018, but quickly withdrew from the race.
He is trying again to run for Ohio’s Senate seat, only this time he’s doing it on the back of former President Donald Trump. However, despite all his claims to support Trump, Mandel endorsed and voted for Marco Rubio in the 2016 Republican primary.
In the last year, Mandel was suspended from Twitter for 12 hours for making a poll asking which “illegals” would commit more crimes: “Muslim Terrorists” or “Mexican Gangbangers.” He also told a far-right website George Soros and the “deep state” were behind the Black Lives Matter movement, the COVID-19 pandemic and the January 6 insurrection.
Commenters agreed critical thinking wasn’t something Mandel engaged in often.
Mandel can join a list of other conservatives who thought satirical takes were real, including GOP Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Joe Rogan and anti-vaxxers.
